Be An Asset, Not An Ass

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string(3225) "As a South African living in Australia I watched as Wayde Van Niekerk broke a 17-year-old world record at the Olympics in Rio. How my fellow South Africans celebrated for him! I could feel the South African pride and love for Wayde all the way in Sydney.
This led me to think about how we either like or dislike athletes and how it is largely based on what plays out on the sports field and the image they portray in the media. The list of most disliked sportspeople is endless:

John McEnroe (millennials this is before your time);

Patrick Reed;

Kieron Fellon;

Floyd Mayweather;

Le Bron James;

Luis Suarez; and of course

Nick Kyrgios.

Why do people love to hate them? There may be a few reasons, but mostly it’s because they display poor sportsmanship and a bad attitude.
Having been in the recruitment industry for a little while now, I have been fortunate to work with many Serenas, Waydes, and even Ronaldos. I have also seen the likes of Mayweathers, Armstrongs and Kyrgios’ come and go.
This begs the question: What lessons could we learn from these bad boys and what can we do in the workplace to create a better sense of sportsmanship and teamwork?
Be Open to Direction
One of the biggest mistakes you can make is to work against the coaches and management of your team. Factor one is that they have worked hard to be in that position but more importantly, they want you to win, so they too can win.
Be Polite
Loosely translated… don’t be an ass to the players, those on your team and even those you’re competing against. You don’t have to like everyone you play with but treating others with respect will earn you respect.
Play fair and don’t cheat
Don’t take credit for the work of others that means…don’t be a lazy ass. You lose very important alliances and trust that you may be need to rely upon in the future.
Don’t Make Excuses or Blame Colleagues
If you do lose, own up to your own weaknesses. As long as you learn from your mistakes you can grow and improve.
Don’t Show Off
Loosely translated… don’t be a smart ass. If you are good at what you do people will think highly of you and praise you, no need to constantly pat yourself on the back in fact, it’ll make you look insecure and foolish.
Don’t Be Selfish
Be willing to delegate tasks – even if you may be a better player. Giving team mates an opportunity to work with you will foster a culture of collaboration.
Encourage Your Team
Root for your team whether you win or lose. This shows loyalty, and people respect others who are loyal to them. If you lose, simply go back on your mistakes and learn from them – without nasty finger-pointing
I know that I constantly need to check in with myself to ensure that I am practising all of these things as recruitment can be pretty competitive game however I believe that with this winning attitude people will want to work with you again and you may even inspire other players to be better."
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string(116) "With a winning attitude people will want to work with you again and you may even inspire other players to be better."
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As a South African living in Australia I watched as Wayde Van Niekerk broke a 17-year-old world record at the Olympics in Rio. How my fellow South Africans celebrated for him! I could feel the South African pride and love for Wayde all the way in Sydney.

This led me to think about how we either like or dislike athletes and how it is largely based on what plays out on the sports field and the image they portray in the media. The list of most disliked sportspeople is endless:

John McEnroe (millennials this is before your time);

Patrick Reed;

Kieron Fellon;

Floyd Mayweather;

Le Bron James;

Luis Suarez; and of course

Nick Kyrgios.

Why do people love to hate them? There may be a few reasons, but mostly it’s because they display poor sportsmanship and a bad attitude.

Having been in the recruitment industry for a little while now, I have been fortunate to work with many Serenas, Waydes, and even Ronaldos. I have also seen the likes of Mayweathers, Armstrongs and Kyrgios’ come and go.

This begs the question: What lessons could we learn from these bad boys and what can we do in the workplace to create a better sense of sportsmanship and teamwork?

Be Open to Direction

One of the biggest mistakes you can make is to work against the coaches and management of your team. Factor one is that they have worked hard to be in that position but more importantly, they want you to win, so they too can win.

Be Polite

Loosely translated… don’t be an ass to the players, those on your team and even those you’re competing against. You don’t have to like everyone you play with but treating others with respect will earn you respect.

Play fair and don’t cheat

Don’t take credit for the work of others that means…don’t be a lazy ass. You lose very important alliances and trust that you may be need to rely upon in the future.

Don’t Make Excuses or Blame Colleagues

If you do lose, own up to your own weaknesses. As long as you learn from your mistakes you can grow and improve.

Don’t Show Off

Loosely translated… don’t be a smart ass. If you are good at what you do people will think highly of you and praise you, no need to constantly pat yourself on the back in fact, it’ll make you look insecure and foolish.

Don’t Be Selfish

Be willing to delegate tasks – even if you may be a better player. Giving team mates an opportunity to work with you will foster a culture of collaboration.

Encourage Your Team

Root for your team whether you win or lose. This shows loyalty, and people respect others who are loyal to them. If you lose, simply go back on your mistakes and learn from them – without nasty finger-pointing

I know that I constantly need to check in with myself to ensure that I am practising all of these things as recruitment can be pretty competitive game however I believe that with this winning attitude people will want to work with you again and you may even inspire other players to be better.